The next morning came rather quickly, and I woke up refreshed and no longer tired. Looking to the clock on the bedside table, I realised it was quite early in the morning. Heading straight to the fridge, I opened it to find nothing inside. Maybe I could eat later then..... Deciding to freshen up and wash my hair, I entered the bathroom to find all the necessities already in there. This was very helpful. Turning on the shower, I stripped down and stepped into the shower which had running water now falling from the shower head. The hot water dripping onto my skin felt relaxing and nice. It had been a while since I had had a proper shower. My wavy hair became straight as it hung down my back and down the side of my face. Black one side. White the other. I wonder how the other ninja would react to my sudden presence.
After getting dressed into the same clothes as yesterday, my pouch containing my shuriken and kunai, attached to my right thigh above the bandages, I walked to the front door. Just as I opened the door, I revealed a boy seeming like he was about to knock. Seeing me standing there already, he rubbed the back of his neck embarrassed, a grin on his happy looking face. He had blue eyes and blond, spiky hair, along with what looked to be whisker markings on his cheeks. Naruto's outfit consisted of an orange tracksuit with blue on the upper shoulders area as well as around the waist, a white swirl with a tassel on the left side, a red Uzumaki swirl crest on the back, a large white collar, orange pants with a shuriken holster attached to his right knee, blue sandals, and a blue forehead protector.
"Hehe, good morning!" He beamed at me, his tone carefree. "Iruka-sensei told me to take you to the Academy. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage! Believe it!" He exclaimed loudly. I almost winced at how loud his voice was this early in the morning, but then what he said clicked into my brain and I raised an eyebrow amused. He had high goals.
"I'm Tsukiko. Nice to meet you." I smirked. "Thank you for taking the time to show me the way."
"No problem. Anything for my new neighbour." He blushed, not seeming to be used to how nice I was being. Looked like it was rare for someone to be nice to this kid because of what he held inside of him. It wasn't his fault though, so he didn't deserve to be hated for something that he didn't even do. "Let's go!" He cheered, grabbed my wrist and pulling me along. I barely had enough time to shut my door behind me, before allowing him to drag me along.
As we past through the village, multiple people turned to stare at us. Their eyes looked disgusted at the boy holding onto me, and their expressions became one of confusion upon seeing a stranger with the boy who was hated. Idiots. Naruto seemed to either not notice the glares or not care, as he carried on blabbing on about how he was going to become Hokage and show everyone what he was worth and how strong he would become. He seemed so carefree, but a closer inspection told me that he still felt pained and angered by how the villagers responded to his mere presence in the streets.
"Naruto?" I spoke up, interrupting his big speech. "Would you want to be my friend?" He came to an immediate halt and spun around before I could move another inch. He grabbed hold of my shoulders and stared into my eyes shocked and questioning.
"Really?" He gaped, astonished that anyone would even dare ask if he wanted to be his friend. Nodding, I shrugged like it was no big deal. "Yahoo!" He cheered, lunging at me and grabbing me in a hug. Skidding back, I caught my footing and stood there with the boy clinging onto me, a grin on his lips.
"Um..... Naruto? We should get to the Academy." I mumbled, feeling awkward at experiencing a hug for the time in my life. He pulled back nodding in understanding and grabbed hold of my hand, once again dragging me along to our destination.
Arriving at the Academy, Naruto led me inside and to where his class was based. Opening the door, he pulled me up to where he sat. Slipping my hand out of his, I went to the very back and sat there instead, not wanting to intrude. Fresh start, so might as start off without bothering my only friend here. He looked confused and stared at me as if trying to figure something out. He seemed to reach a conclusion as he stood up and came over to me.
"What's wrong Tsukiko-chan?" He asked concerned.
"It's just Tsukiko, Naruto." I chuckled. "Nothing's wrong, just thought that I shouldn't bother you all the time."
"Ah, don't worry about it. It'd be cool to sit next to you." He grinned, giving me a reassuring look. Nodding in understanding, I ushered him back to his seat a few rows down. Concealing my chakra, I made sure that nobody noticed me here until it was necessary.
Soon more people began filing into the class. Two girls came bursting into the classroom looking worn out. What on earth had they been doing? Were they racing each other? I zoned out of what was happening around me until I noticed Naruto crouched on the desk in front of this dark hair boy who was wearing a blue top. What was he doing? They glared at each other and you could basically see the sparks of tension passing between them. That was until someone knocked into Naruto from behind and caused him to fall forward. Resisting the urge to burst into laughter, I stayed silently watching as Naruto's lips pressed onto the boy's in front of him. They pulled apart and held their throats, practically gagging and spitting out germs.
"You jerk..... Naruto! I'll kill you!" The boy spat out.
"What? I feel rage........" Naruto muttered, turning around and staring at the group of girls who were sending death glares to the poor boy. Naruto began defending himself but was then jumped on by the group of girls. I held myself back from leaping in and kept to keeping myself hidden from everyone's view.
They were stopped when the teacher entered into the room. Looking to the front as everyone went back to their seats, I saw Iruka standing there grinning.
"As of today, you all have become full fledged Ninjas....." Iruka announced to the class. His eyes landed on me and he smiled. Nobody seemed to notice though. "However you're still Genin. The tough part's still to come! From here on, you'll be in a squad of three and carry out your missions under your Jōnin teachers. "The groups have been determined so that the strength of the groups will be balanced. Now for the assignments!" He held up his pieces of paper and began to read from them. I ignored him and gazed out of the window at the sight outside. Birds were flying around in the sky and butterflies and other bugs were fluttering and crawling around the tree branches. "Now then, next is Group Seven...... Uzumaki Naruto! Haruno Sakura!"
"Hooray!" Naruto cheered once he heard the girls name. Interesting. The girls had fell down however in disappointment.
"And...... with Uchiha Sasuke!" Iruka announced finally. Once his name was called out, their positions swapped with the girl, Sakura cheering and Naruto sulking. The rest of the teams were called out before everyone was dismissed, being told to come back later to be introduced to their teachers. Everyone walked out of the classroom, with Naruto waiting behind for me at his desk while I walked up to Iruka.
"Iruka? I wasn't called out, so who am I with?" I questioned confused. He jumped slightly, seeming surprised that I had appeared and revealed my chakra again.
"Oh, Tsukiko. I was informed that you will be staying with Team Seven. The Hokage wanted you to feel comfortable and so he allowed you to stay with Naruto as he saw you too getting along on your way here." He smiled. A small smile slid onto my lips and I bowed before turning back to Naruto. He stared at me in anticipation before I told him.
"I'm with your team." He jumped out of his seat and dived for me again, wrapping me in a hug.
"Yahoo!" He cheered, a large grin on his cheerful face. Something about this kid made me want to be happy too, no matter what kind of crap happened in the past. Maybe I could start fresh and be happier here. Was that what the Hokage had planned for me all along?
We walked outside and we saw the other girl in team seven, Sakura. Sakura had bright pink hair, large green eyes, and fair skin. Sakura wore a red qipao dress with white circular designs, with short sleeves, with a zipper, tight dark green shorts, standard ninja sandals, and a forehead protector. Naruto waved and called out to her causing her to turn around.
"Since we're in the same group and all, let's eat together!" Naruto smiled.
"Why should I have to eat with you?" She demanded angrily, hands tightening into fists at her sides.
"Well...... we're in the same group, so......" Naruto tried again.
"You're..... annoying." Sakura glared, turning around and walking off. "Sasuke! Where are you?" She called out. Naruto's face fell and he frowned. From what I had gathered so far. Naruto loved Sakura, but Sakura and that group of fangirls all loved that boy Sasuke that Naruto kissed earlier.
"It's ok Naruto, I don't think you're annoying." I tried to cheer him up. He smiled at me thankfully and walked off, seeming to want to be alone. Sighing, I turned and walked into the town area, looking around the shops. A delicious scent managed to catch my attention so I followed it to this food place called Ichiraku's Ramen. Ramen? I'd never had that before. Wandering over to it, I sat on one of the seats and looked over to the man standing there smiling a closed eye smile.
"Hello, how can I help you?" The man asked kindly. "My name's Teuchi, this here is my daughter Ayame. I don't think I've seen you around before." The woman behind him turned and smiled at me warmly. Ayame was a slender woman with long, dark brown hair and large black eyes, as well as fair skin. She wore a white robe with the sleeves folded, a sort of dark blue apron with ribbon ties at the top and a bright white bandanna.
"I'm Tsukiko. I'm new here." I informed him, watching him carefully.
"What's your favourite ramen then Tsukiko?" He wondered curiously.
"I've never had it before....." I admitted with a shrug. His face changed to one of shock before he told Ayame to make me a bowl of miso ramen with extra chashu. I had no idea what it was but he informed me that his special customer always ordered it. When I asked who the customer was, he grinned and said the name of my new friend. Naruto.
Soon a hot bowl was placed in front of me along with some chopsticks. Staring at the bowl, the enticing smell drifting up my nose, I pulled the chopsticks apart and began to dig in. The first mouthful made me feel at peace and in love with the food instantly. Teuchi chuckled as he saw my eyes light up as I began to eat the food quicker.
"Looks like she likes it." Ayame giggled from behind Teuchi. I ignored them and continued shoveling the food into my mouth. This was the best thing I'd ever eaten! No wonder Naruto loved it.......
Unfortunately the bowl soon became empty, and as I went to pay for the ramen, he told me not and that it was a welcoming gift. Bowing thankfully, I ran off back to the Academy, ready to meet our new sensei and the team again. Everyone seemed to be back in the classroom and one by one, each group would disappear with their sensei's. However, ours still hadn't come. I used this time to study the boy known as Uchiha Sasuke, the last of the Uchiha clan. Mother had mentioned this boy before and how his own brother had killed everyone in the clan. Nobody quite knew the reason though and so they believed that it was for power. My intuition however told me otherwise. The traitor known as Itachi couldn't have killed his entire clan for no reason whatsoever. There must be a reason that nobody knew of. Sasuke had black eyes as well as black hair with a blue tint to it. His hair was spiky in the back, and he had chin-length bangs that parted down to frame both sides of his face. Sasuke's clothing consisted of a navy blue, short-sleeved shirt with a high collar and the Uchiha crest on the back and white arm warmers.
Naruto was currently on look out for the teacher, a plan going through that hyper mind of his.
"Why's it that only our squad's teacher is late?" Naruto questioned annoyed. "The other squads have gone off somewhere with their new teachers, and Iruka-sensei's also left." He complained.
"Don't look at me." Sakura sighed. "Hey, what're you doing, Naruto?" She demanded after hearing a rattling sound as Naruto placed a board rubber crammed in the door as a trap for our sensei. He chuckled in response, looking quite happy with himself.
"It'll be his fault because he's late." Naruto shrugged, hopping down from the stool.
"Man! You're asking for it!" Sakura informed him, her hands on her hips.
"A Jōnin wouldn't get caught in such a weak booby trap." Sasuke smirked.
"That's right! You're such an idiot!" Sakura continued on. At that moment, the door opened and the chalk rubber fell down onto the head of our sensei. Freezing, I stared wide eyed at the man who walked through the door. Naruto burst out laughing and Sakura began apologising to him, acting like she didn't really want to laugh as well. Hatake Kakashi was our sensei. My father......... He picked up the chalk rubber and glanced at it for a moment. Kakashi was a relatively tall shinobi, with spiky silver hair and dark grey eyes. He wore standard jōnin attire: a Konoha flak jacket, dark blue pants and a long-sleeve shirt with the addition of wearing shorter, fingerless gloves with metal plates on the backhand. His forehead protector went across one of his eyes leaving only one eyes left to look at, and he also wore a mask that covered the rest of his face. Only an ear and eye was left visible on his face.
"How can I put this?" He murmured, rubbing at his chin as if he had a bear. "As for my first impression of you guys......... Well, I hate you." He informed them bluntly causing their faces to drop. After that, we were told to go up to the roof. It seemed that both Sasuke and Sakura hadn't noticed my presence, Naruto just raced up the stairs to the roof while Kakashi disappeared.
Bursting out of the door, we arrived on the roof. Kakashi was sat on the railing just staring at us. I kept my eyes cast down so he didn't see that they were gold.
"Let's see. First off, you guys introduce yourselves." He instructed us as we all sat down.
"Introduce ourselves....... What should we say?" Sakura asked.
"Your likes, dislikes, your future dreams, hobbies, things like that!" He shrugged simply.
"Hey. Before that, please tell us about yourself." Naruto spoke up.
"Me? My name's Hatake Kakashi. I don't feel like telling you guys about my likes and dislikes. I've never really thought about my future dream...... As for my hobbies, I have many." Sakura complained to the others about how we only found out his name, before he then instructed Naruto to introduce himself next.
"My name's Uzumaki Naruto! I like instant ramen, but what I like even more is the ramen from Ichiraku that Iruka-sensei treats me to. What I dislike is the three minutes after pouring hot water in the instant ramen. My hobby is eating and comparing ramen! And my future dream...... is to surpass the Hokage!" He exclaimed proudly. "And so I'm going to get the entire village to acknowledge my existence!"
"I'm Haruno Sakura!" Sakura beamed. "What I like...... I mean, who I like is......" Glance at Sasuke. "And my hobby is, I mean....." Another two glances. "My future dream is....." Yet again, but this time with a squeal.
"And? What about your dislikes?" Kakashi questioned her.
"Naruto." She answered in the most disgusted voice. Naruto looked traumatised while Sakura continued to keep glancing at Sasuke.
"My name's...... Uchiha Sasuke. I have lots of dislikes, but no likes in particular. And....... I don't feel like summing up my ambition as just a dream but I do have an ambition. The ambition to restore my clan and without fail...... to kill a certain man!" He informed everyone. What a depressing boy...... I knew who he was on about, but it seemed that Naruto was wary as to whether he meant him or not. It was silent for a while before Kakashi spoke up.
"And for the last surprise member." He said, gesturing to me. They all turned in shock. Well....... Naruto wasn't so shocked but the other two were.
"When did she get there?" Sakura gaped.
"Who is she?" I heard Sasuke mutter to himself. Smirking at Sasuke, I saw him glare at me but I could see the curiosity in his eyes.
"I'm Tsukiko. I have few likes, multiple dislikes and for my dream....... Probably protecting the future Hokage." I informed them with a glance to a grinning Naruto. I kept my eyes cast down which caused Kakashi to try to study me.
"Good. The four of you are very distinctive and interesting!" Kakashi announced. "We'll have mission tomorrow!"
"Yes, sir! What kind of mission?" Naruto called out.
"First, we'll do what we can do with just five people. A survival exercise. This is no simple exercise." He started chuckling causing everyone to look irritated.
"Hey, what's so funny sensei?" Sakura sulked.
"Uh, well, if I told you, I know you'll grow disenchanted. Of the twenty eight graduates, only nine will be recognised as junior ninjas. The remaining nineteen will be sent back to the Academy. In other words, this exercise is an extremely difficult test with a failure rate of 66% or higher! See? See? You got disenchanted!" His tone lightened up at the end to become both teasing yet mocking. He continued on but I ignored what he said.
Soon enough, everyone began jumping away in different directions. Naruto was sat there quietly as he looked to be deep in thought. Walking over, I tapped him on the shoulder.
"Naruto? You ok?" I asked. He snapped out of it and grinned up at me, jumping up on to his feet.
"I'm great Tsukiko! Believe it!" He made a peace sign and laughed. Smirking in amusement, I shook my head in disbelief at how cheerful this boy seemed to act. "We have to be up at five o'clock for the test though, and we're not allowed to eat!" He groaned, a hand rubbing at his stomach.
"Come on. Let's go." I smiled, grabbing his wrist and pulling him with me as I jumped down from the roof. Naruto let out a startled yell but I put him on my back before we hit the ground.
"How did you survive that fall Tsukiko? You're awesome!" Naruto gasped amazed.
"Lots of lots of practice." I answered him vaguely. Letting him off my back, we both walked along the streets again. He began telling me about how much he loved Sakura but hated Sasuke because they were rivals and due to Sakura being in love with him. I listened in carefully, feeling amused at some of the things he said.
Suddenly, a hand shot out of an alleyway and muffled a shocked sound coming out of my lips. Naruto didn't seem to notice as he carried on talking as if I was still there. I was pulled up against a hard chest, but the person let me go after a moment. Stepping away and spinning around, I instantly turned my eyes to the floor and tilted my head down when I saw who it was.
"Why won't you let me see your eyes?" He asked. "And why didn't you tell us your last name?" I ignored him and tried walking away. However, he didn't seem to want to let me leave. Grabbing hold of my wrist, I spun round on the pads of my feet and my eyes flew up to his without realising. His own eyes widened in shock as he got a better look at my eyes and face. Snatching my wrist away, or stumbled back with a glare. "Gold eyes?....... You look like............ What is your relation to Rin Hatoshi?" He demanded.
"I'm her daughter." I replied bluntly, my tone annoyed.
"Daughter? How old are you?" He breathed.
"Twelve in a few days." I smirked, eyes becoming amused as I saw him trying to put it together. His eyes widened in realisation, but before he could say anything, I had already jumped onto the roof and run off back to my apartment. Looks like he'd figured out who I was........